Leading Learning Serving

Press Release

Fluor Supports Students, Donates Materials and Time

Posted Wednesday, March 25, 2015

Houston, Texas: Career & Technical Education (CTE) welding students from along the Gulf Coast and surrounding areas are grateful to Fluor Corporation for providing materials to conduct the region's Annual SkillsUSA contest held on January 27, 2015 at San Jacinto College Central in Pasadena, Texas. SkillsUSA is an annual event that gathers the best welding students from area high schools. The goal of the event is to showcase the talents of students and to prepare them for the workforce while shortening the training time for employers. Fluor began partnering with school districts in 2014 and has been a great asset to the CTE welding programs in the area. SkillsUSA organizers, John Membreno of Goose Creek CISD and Zeek Garcia of Pasadena ISD agreed, “We are very fortunate to have business partners such as Fluor who are committed to the program and provide materials for all contestants to exhibit their skills.” Over the last four years, the welding competition has shown a steady increase in student participation; nearly 100 students competed in the Introductory, Level 1, and Level II welding events recently.

Galena Park ISD CTE Director, Laura Mann, is thankful that Fluor is committed to ensuring welding students have every opportunity to be successful. In fact, without Fluor's material donation, competition organizers would have been hard pressed to hold the regional event. Fluor is committed to students, not only in the present, but in the future as well. “While Fluor's donated materials for the contest was greatly appreciated, the real bonus is they time they dedicate to our students,” Mann stated. “Fluor's commitment extends into the classroom in the form of hands on demonstrations that are directly aligned to skills taught by industry welding instructors. They also regularly visit our classrooms to explain what will be expected of them in the workforce and how important it is to set career goals. This helps our students gain a competitive edge in the workforce upon graduation,” Mann added. In the next few weeks, winners of the Regional SkillsUSA welding competition will be fine tuning their skills with material donated by Fluor. Competitors are eager to proudly represent their respective school districts in Corpus Christi at the state competition slated for March 27-28, 2015.

Pictured: After delivering welding supplies to students at Galena Park High School, Rhonda Glover, Director I, HR from Fluor, discusses goals and career opportunities with students.